Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) is seeking approval to broadly investigate unspecified violations of federal labor law by major corporations. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, which Sanders chairs, is expected to vote on authorization for the investigations during their March 8, 2023, meeting.
The vote appears to be part of a larger effort by Sanders to subpoena Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz to testify about the coffee company’s compliance with federal labor law, but the scope of the request has drawn scrutiny from business groups. A collection of business organizations and trade groups, including FEDA, have signed a letter to the HELP Committee opposing the proposed all-encompassing investigation.
Noting that there is no precedent for this type of blanket authority to investigate businesses, the letter states that Sanders “provides no explanation for seeking such broad permission for his staff to interfere with existing investigations or enforcement proceedings being conducted by the multiple federal agencies that enforce our country’s labor laws.”
The letter continues: “As drafted, the authority sought also could permit the Chair to meddle in the affairs of any employer anywhere in the country at any time. The abuse of process by a committee to target individuals for their beliefs and/or for their assertion of their constitutional due process rights has historically been frowned upon.
"At a time when our country faces real challenges, including an ongoing workforce shortage, the recovery from the impacts of the pandemic on our education system, the ongoing rise in health care costs, and a dearth of retirement security, the HELP Committee and its staff could be focused on solutions to assist everyday Americans,” the letter states. “Rather, the Chair seeks HELP Committee members’ permission to focus on pursuing needless, unconstructive, undisciplined investigations of American employers.”
The full letter is available here.